Koa Wealth Management LLC Sells 101 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Koa Wealth Management LLC cut its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 3.1% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 3,176 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 101 shares during the period. Mastercard accounts for 1.4% of Koa Wealth Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest position. Koa Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $1,672,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Mastercard by 0.7% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 35,288,912 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $17,425,665,000 after purchasing an additional 257,312 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 21,355,081 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $10,545,139,000 after buying an additional 700,769 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Mastercard by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 18,375,053 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $9,043,972,000 after acquiring an additional 453,773 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Mastercard by 120,665.3% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 8,041,758 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,971,020,000 after acquiring an additional 8,035,099 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in Mastercard by 4.2% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,501,814 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,800,836,000 after acquiring an additional 304,293 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Trading Up 2.9 %

Shares of Mastercard stock opened at $564.81 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $518.40 billion, a PE ratio of 42.72, a P/E/G ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.10. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1 year low of $428.86 and a 1 year high of $576.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.29. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $526.58 and a 200-day moving average price of $499.80.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.71 by $0.11. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 178.27%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.47 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, December 17th that permits the company to repurchase $12.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the credit services provider to purchase up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 9th will be paid a $0.76 dividend. This is an increase from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.54%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on MA. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $572.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Mastercard from $593.00 to $580.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Piper Sandler increased their price target on Mastercard from $575.00 to $591.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Oppenheimer lowered their target price on Mastercard from $591.00 to $588.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Mastercard has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $567.29.

About Mastercard

Mastercard Incorporated, a technology company, provides transaction processing and other payment-related products and services in the United States and internationally. The company offers integrated products and value-added services for account holders, merchants, financial institutions, digital partners, businesses, governments, and other organizations, such as programs that enable issuers to provide consumers with credits to defer payments; payment products and solutions that allow its customers to access funds in deposit and other accounts; prepaid programs services; and commercial credit, debit, and prepaid payment products and solutions.